Gerald Knaus: Recognition of Kosovo, a ticket for Serbia to EU

Kosovo's recognition is a ticket for Serbia to enter the European Union, says the Austrian analyst Gerald Knaus, founder and president of the European Stability Initiative.

"If Serbia does not recognize Kosovo, it will definitely never join the EU. Everybody knows this. And as long as this apparent truth is not accepted by politicians in Belgrade, the more time will be lost," says Knaus in an interview to the Balkan Radio Service on Free Europe.

Commenting on the statement of Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama that Kosovo and Albania one day will have to have a president, Knaus says it is more an attempt to deceive the European Union.

"I think it is a blof, I do not think there is real support for changing borders, neither in Tirana nor in Pristina. Good relations between neighbors are not a threat to anyone, but more than that would be completely undesirable and totally unrealistic. However, it is clear that if Albania and Kosovo are not seriously treated compared to the rest of Europe, if left out, they will remind Europe that they can put issues on the agenda that make them interesting again," says Knaus.

On Monday, the European Union has warned Albania against "interference" in neighboring countries, as Rama said that his country and Kosovo may one day have a single president as a "symbol of national unity".